The Importance of a Clean Surface

Source:www.stonediamondtool.com Date:2018/2/23 Read:446

With chemically stained floors, the consequences of substandard cleaning can be difficult to remedy. Unlike paints and coatings for concrete, which are opaque and can disguise many evils, acid stains are transparent. Any unwanted residue remaining on the floor is likely to show through the newly applied stain.

"If you are negligent in the cleaning process, it can literally change the entire end effect. A substandard cleaning job will really show up once the final sealer or wax is applied," says Sargent.

"Chemical stains also need to penetrate into the concrete surface to react with the lime in the concrete. Any materials that inhibit concrete stain penetration, such as grease and oil, or curing membranes, will prevent the color from taking, says Tom Schmidt of Jagger Scored/Stained Concrete, Plano, Texas, a company specializing in decorative staining of residential and commercial concrete floors.

Curing membranes, which he encounters more on commercial projects than on residential jobs, are especially difficult to remove. "Even after you clean the surface, the curing compound may have migrated down into the pores of the concrete and the stain will react minimally. You may get marks that look like water spots," he says.

Schmidt also warns against acid etching of floors before staining. A lot of people think they need to acid etch the concrete like they do before applying a paint or coating, to get the paint to adhere. But acid washing depletes the lime content, which is what the minerals in the acid stain react with.